Over the years, Chile West manager Chris Price has been tying and fishing Cantaria beetle patterns of all shapes and sizes. Today we get to hear from Chris about the evolution of the beetle pattern.

Cantaria Beetle Fly Evolution

Back in the day, some 12 to 14 years ago, when a few of us first started fishing in Chile, we discovered the Cantaria beetle. Our fly tying materials consisted of a little of everything and not much of anything needed to tie a Cantaria beetle imitation. Our first beetle patterns were just black foam with black crystal chenille underbodies, and whatever color of rubber legs we had.

Some of the patterns were crude and not so aero dynamic. We tried to tie them as realistic as possible and were tying in the huge pinchers in the front. This would make the fly spin in the air and wind up the leader, so tying in the pinchers was dropped.

We experimented with gluing different types of mylar materials to the foam to give it the iridescent look of the real beetle. Some of these patterns worked and some didn’t, depending on the density of the mylar. If it was too thick, the teeth of the trout could not penetrate and the fly would slide out of the mouth. The glue tended to make the foam brittle. It was decided that just the soft foam body was best.

We then found “Loco Foam” which came in a variety of colors, but we liked the “Peacock” and “Oil slick” colors. We first used the foam with the color side up but then we realized this was more for the angler and that the fish never would see the color unless the fly was riding upside down. We then flipped the foam or sometimes glued two pieces together with the colored sides out.

Eric Neufeld, former guide and current Simms/Idylwilde/Ross rep, designed a pattern that he had great success with. It was one of the mylar designs but what was different about this fly was the rubber legs. He had used fluorescent orange and then painted them with a black magic marker leaving the tips orange. This fly caught hundreds of fish until the skid lip had been torn off.

I still have the very fly in my box. Photo: Chris Price

Why did this fly work so well? What I learned from this fly was that the red/orange legs were the key. If you look at a Cantaria beetle from below, you really only have a silhouette except for the light that shines through the tips off the legs, giving them a red glow.

Photo: Chris Price

We then started experimenting using legs of different transparent colors.

Rick Sisler found a few orange squid jig skirts in his fishing gear and cut the tentacles off to use as legs. They were a bit thicker and stiffer than the usual rubber legs. They worked well but what we liked about them was that not only were they semi transparent but they had a bit of glitter in them for added attraction.

Photo: Chris Price

Back then we were throwing these huge patterns with 6 and 7 weights. In a good wind it was tough to get it out there, but they raised a lot of fish!

Pre-mayhem. Photo: Chris PricePost-mayhem. Photo: Chris Price

Today’s beetle is tied in a variety of sizes from realistic to bite size morsels but still based on these same principles.

Trevor Covich, as you may know, guides at Alaska West and Chile West. Trevor’s in the middle of prime-time fishing in Chile right now, but he was still kind enough to send in a great post on our favorite bug from Southern Chile, the famous Cantaria beetle.

Thanks, T.

Bring On the Beetle

February is here and though we like casting our large stoneflies, we at Chile West have adopted the American policy that bigger is better! The Cantaria beetles are showing up like they do every year around this time. It’s the equivalent of fishing the mouse for hungry ‘bows in Alaska. The difference here is that you get both rainbows and browns, and it’s a great way to target the brown trout of your life (a.k.a. Leroy Brown).

Chug it, twitch it, swing it, dead drift it! All these presentations work. When on your feet fishing smaller water, the best presentation is to work downstream, going away from the upstream dry fly mentality. Cast to the far bank, straight across, and let your beetle swing while gently popping your rod tip, and taking a step after every cast.

While fishing out of the boat, accuracy can be crucial but delicate is not the word. These beetles are some of the clumsiest critters I’ve ever seen. When they lose altitude and hit the water it’s game over – there’s no getting back in the air. So casting under overhanging trees around logs and, yes, the back eddy, will all bring fish to the top.

Sipper. Photo: Trevor Covich

The best way to describe a take on the Cantaria beetle is to imagine watching a Great White shark blast a seal from below. Since the prey is too large to take in one bite, it’s common for them to hit it hard first and then come back for seconds. I had a 24” brown hit my beetle so hard the fish did a flip – impressive! However, the fish in the picture above sipped it. We barely saw the take. The larger fish down here do as they please, and for them engulfing a large Cantaria beetle in one bite isn’t difficult.

Cantaria addict. Photo: Trevor Covich

The best time to come down for the beetle is February and March. Fishing the beetle will ruin you! Like the mouse in Alaska, it has converted many trout fisherman to the dark side. So when you probably should be throwing the Chernobyl, you’ve got beetle juice pumping through your veins, and why not – it’s a blast!

Why go all the way to Chile for trout when you can fish your home river? Yeah, it’s in another hemisphere for most of you, but the payoff is huge.

The Carretera Austral. The ‘Southern Highway’ that we follow through Chilean Patagonia takes us through another world. Scenery and isolation combine with fabulous fishing and fun on the road for a trip that is really unmatched. This is one of the last frontiers!

Opposing Seasons. When it’s winter in the U.S., its summer in Chile! Why sit around waiting for the ice to thaw when you could be fishing in shorts and sandals?

Lack of Fishing Pressure. The fishing pressure is tiny in most spots we fish; in others it’s basically zero. On most days we don’t see another angler. Chile West has a philosophy that anglers should feel like they have the water to themselves. The fish should not be shy to take. We do our best to take you where no man has gone before!

The Cantaria Beetle. One of our teammates down here is the famous Cantaria beetle. Fish love to eat this mouthful of a morsel. It’s big and prickly so fish smash it hard! Fish pounding these critters are not bothered by a prick of a hook now and then.

Variety. Brown trout, rainbow trout and Chinook salmon inhabit almost all rivers that we fish at Chile West, giving you not only variety of species but variety in fishing techniques as well.

Mosquitos, White Socks, No see ums. Well, lack thereof. There are few biting insects in Chile, and certainly not relentless clouds of them. No bug dope necessary!